Han Byeol, aware of the significant impact of his father’s major announcement, took a moment to gather his thoughts before stating his New Year’s wish.

“Father, my wish is to try to love a woman like fate if I happen to meet her three times by chance.”

“You don’t even know what kind of woman she is?”

“I can get to know her as we meet.”

Knowing all about the bitter wound Han Byeol suffered on Baengnyeong Island, everyone welcomed his quirky New Year’s wish.

Du Byeol, the patent attorney, stated his New Year’s wish was to open an independent office. Se Byeol wished for a huge bonus from a hit game release, and Ha Neul wished to find true love with one of the people he was casually seeing.

Father said he would return to Baengnyeong Island when the weather warmed up, and asked Han Byeol to take on the role of father.

Following family tradition, they filled beer glasses to the brim and toasted to the fulfillment of everyone’s wishes.

Han Byeol regretted being too talkative with So Hee whom he met at the mart, and went to sleep holding onto that regret.

He wanted to have their third chance encounter, even if only in his dreams.

*****

As 5 PM approached, the sun disappeared behind the slopes of Mount Washington, and darkness began to fall.

Ha Yeon signaled to Hyun Woo that this would be their last descent as she began skiing downhill.

Having skied since childhood, Ha Yeon’s skills seemed professional to novice Hyun Woo.

She would go ahead, then stop to correct Hyun Woo’s ski posture, or follow behind escorting him while giving directions.

Though it was Hyun Woo’s first time skiing, thanks to Ha Yeon’s excellent coaching, by dusk he could smoothly descend intermediate courses without falling.

Ha Yeon gave a thumbs up and flashed a bright smile at me as we finished our last run of the afternoon.

The new experience gave me a unique joy and satisfaction.

For Hyun Woo, whose only exercise had been PE classes in middle and high school, the experience of skiing was novel, fascinating, and incredibly fun.

Back at the log cabin, Ha Yeon and Hyun Woo lit the fireplace and prepared dinner.

Ha Yeon took out LA galbi, handmade sausages, and canned beer from the icebox, and handed me a can, suggesting we have a drink to quench our thirst.

Ha Yeon skillfully lit the barbecue fire and began grilling the LA galbi and handmade sausages.

“Ha Yeon, what can’t you do? Your cooking and barbecue skills are professional level.”

“Elder brother, I don’t think there’s anything I’m particularly bad at… Though I hadn’t experienced love before meeting you… Thanks to you, I’m no longer single. Hehe.”

Ha Yeon truly was an all-around genius. Not only was she intellectually charming, she was also a great cook, and as I saw today, an expert skier.

“I took cooking lessons in Korea at my mother’s insistence. From a former Blue House head chef. I’m used to lighting fires and cooking at barbecue parties we sometimes have at home in Korea.”

It was clear she came from a different world than Hyun Woo.

For Hyun Woo, meals were just for survival; he had never even thought about the concept of cooking.

His father would yell at his mother every morning to prepare dried pollack soup for a hangover cure, and Hyun Woo, sick of dried pollack soup throughout his childhood, wouldn’t even look at it in restaurants.

Having never had a barbecue party in his life, Hyun Woo felt the stark difference between the ultra-rich and the ultra-poor as he watched Ha Yeon’s skillful handiwork.

It was a different dimension of experience, a different feeling than he had when meeting So Hee.

Ha Yeon poured red wine into prepared crystal glasses.

“Elder brother, I’m so happy to come to the ski resort with you.”

“It’s my first time skiing too, but I had so much fun today.”

As they clinked their glasses filled with red wine in a toast, the crystal made a clear “ching~” sound.

As Hyun Woo held a sip of wine in his mouth, Ha Yeon playfully kissed him.

Startled, Hyun Woo’s lips parted, and red wine trickled out one side.

Ha Yeon found Hyun Woo’s reaction amusing.

The LA galbi was deliciously cooked, and the handmade sausages were grilled to perfection.

Hyun Woo began dinner, grateful for the abundant beauty provided by Ha Yeon and nature.

The LA galbi, made with a secret sauce recipe from the former Blue House chef instructor, tasted much better than what he had eaten in restaurants.

“I can only be a doctor or professor, but Ha Yeon, you seem to have so many career options. You’d be a huge success if you opened a restaurant.”

“Me, open a restaurant?”

Thinking about it, it was truly a foolish thing to say.

Telling the only daughter of S Group’s chairman to open a successful restaurant… He wanted to pull out his tongue for saying something so stupid.

“I take back that silly comment.”

Seeing the regret clearly visible on Hyun Woo’s face, Ha Yeon said with a smile:

“If you think it’s that delicious, I’ll consider it as a future career option.”

“No, scholar suits you better. Students would love it if you shared not just your specialized knowledge, but your wealth of general knowledge too.”

“Do you really think so?”

“When I was in medical school, I now understand what a friend meant when he said to become a philosopher first before trying to become a medical scientist.”

Hyun Woo vaguely grasped the meaning of that friend who loved Eastern philosophy as time passed and he met Ha Yeon.

Philosophy was necessary to understand the body, grasp the spirit dwelling in that body, and know the life governed by that spirit.

Becoming fascinated by Ha Yeon’s intellectual charm, Hyun Woo felt that the richness provided by diverse knowledge blessed life with various colors of emotion and spirit.

After finishing a delicious dinner, Ha Yeon and I placed chairs in front of the fireplace, stared blankly at the fire, and drank wine.

The flickering firelight began to draw out the desire in Hyun Woo’s heart again like Lucifer’s red tongue.

The fireplace logs crackled as they burned, igniting flames.

He smelled the unique scent of the cypress log cabin along with the burning wood smell from the fireplace.

It was his first time experiencing a fireplace fire meditation.

Watching the flames from the firewood, Hyun Woo realized for the first time how diverse the color red could be.

For the first time, he understood why people go camping or glamping to stare at burning logs in fire meditation.

Among the various shades of red, there seemed to be white, orange, and yellow, and the spectrum of red colors was diverse.

Ha Yeon connected her Bluetooth speaker and played a song called ‘Love’ by Nat King Cole.

“Elder brother, listen to the lyrics. It’s such a beautiful song.”

I contemplated the ‘Love’ lyrics she played for me.

The line [Take my heart and please don’t break it.] resonated in my heart.

Suddenly, I was reminded of that day on Baengnyeong Island, and So Hee’s face came to mind.

Though it was a pitch-black night, every memory of that night remained vivid.

Hyun Woo had taken So Hee’s body and heart, but he had hurt her.

Then he left Korea for America, and met Ha Yeon in Boston to start his second love.

Now it was also a 1 night 2 day trip, but in contrast to the darkness of Baengnyeong Island, the red firewood was putting on a brilliant flame show, and red wine in crystal glasses decorated the evening.

Hyun Woo had quit smoking when he started his studies in America.

Instead of cigarette smoke in the darkness of Baengnyeong Island, sweet jazz music flowed through the log cabin on Mount Washington.

Through the lyrics of ‘Love’, Ha Yeon showed her heart and clearly conveyed what she wanted from Hyun Woo.

She loved Hyun Woo but played a song wishing he wouldn’t break her heart.

Ha Yeon played another song, ‘The Christmas Song’ by Nat King Cole.

As the soft, sweet music played, Ha Yeon embraced Hyun Woo as if intoxicated by the music.

With their height difference of nearly 30cm, her face filled his chest, and Hyun Woo slightly moved her face away from his chest, worried she might hear his heartbeat.

Ha Yeon’s scent stimulated his nose.

Though physically tired from skiing for the first time all day, a languid feeling came over him, perhaps from the few glasses of wine.

They had drunk alcohol and danced while appreciating the fireplace logs.

How much time had passed!

When Hyun Woo was wandering in his soul like a lost traveler unsure of where to go next, Ha Yeon said to me:

“Elder brother, you must be tired from skiing. Go shower first.”

Though it was winter, he had felt sweat running down his back while skiing.

Wondering if she had smelled his sweat while dancing the blues, Hyun Woo looked at Ha Yeon.

Her face was flushed, either from the wine or the heat of the fireplace.

Finding her appearance cute, Hyun Woo gave her a light kiss.

“Okay, I’ll shower first.”

Hyun Woo draped a towel over his shoulder and entered the shower in the cabin.

To get rid of the chill in the cold shower room, Hyun Woo first turned the hot water knob on the shower.

Hot steam rose, and he undressed and surrendered his body to the hot water from the showerhead.

The water droplets from the showerhead bounced off his muscles, agitated from skiing, and scattered in all directions.

The shower room quickly filled with hot steam, and as Hyun Woo soaped his entire body, he imagined the time after the shower.

The cabin had one double bed and one couch-style sofa.

The couch-style could be unfolded for use as a makeshift bed.

In the rising hot steam, Lucifer’s temptation continued.

.

.

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‘Don’t think foolish thoughts… It’s your first night with her…’